In-line steam trap



May 19, 1953 J. 'W. KAYE IN-LINE STEAM TRAP Filed Feb. 20, 1948 INVEN TOR.

J n! KAYE A TTOR/VEV Patented May 19, 1953 James W. Kaye, Montcla.ir, N. J., assignorto Kaye & MacDonald, Inc., West range, N. J a corporation of New Jersey Application February 20, 1948,- Serial No. 9,724

. GClaim's. (o1. 137 185) This invention relates to steam traps and more specifically to in-line steam traps, r I

It is an object ofthis invention to provide; an in-line steam trap for high pressure service. An in-line steam trap is onewhich has a side inlet and a side outlet. t There has lon been a need in certain industriesfor anin-line steam trap for high pressure service in which it is possible to remove the'valve andseatwithout breaking any pipe joints or rem ina'ccordance withthe invention.

moving the cover ofthe steam trap. The present invention provides an answer for this need.

" It is another object of this invention to simplify the changing of valves and'seats in certain types of steam traps.

' It is a furtherobject of this invention to greatly reduce the time required toreplace the valves and seats in steam traps. I

It is still another object of this invention to provide an in-linesteam trap in which the .valve and seat can be changed'by the simple removal of two stud nuts and the loosening of a single screw. v

I Other objects and features will be apparent as the description proceeds. vi. 4

' In accordance with anillustrative embodiment of the invention, there is provided an in-line steam trap of the float type which can, for example, havea compound lever mechanism for operating the valve therein like that show-n inthe copending application of J. W. Kaye, Serial No..79l,295, filed December 12, 1947. although it isto be understood -'that other types of valve-operating mechanism canbe used as Well. The steam trap comprises a main casing,'inlet and outletblocks attached respectively to two "opposite sides of the trap, an external valve assembly (valve body, valve guide, valve and seat), outlet cap, an inlet tubeor pipe permanently connecting the inlet block to a bottom inlet block attached to the undersideof the'main-casing, and an outlet-tube connecting an opening in the outlet cap to the outlet block and which outlet tube becomes easily removable from the block when the outlet cap is taken off to-change the'valveor -valve seat. The-outlet tube passes through a packing gland which is 'used to hold in place stufling in.a stufiing box in the outlet block. The packing. gland is held in place bya clamp surrounding the outlet block. I The invention will be more readily understood by referring tothe following description taken in -connectionwith the accompanying drawing formingapart thereof,-in which:-

-"Fig 1 is-atop view of anin-line steam trap in-accordance withtheinvention; and

Fig. 2 is an elevational cross-sectional view of the steam trap of Fig. l. I

' Referrin more specifically to the drawings, Figs. 1 and 2 show, by way of example for purposes of illustration, an in-line steam trap III Briefly described, the steam trap Ill comprises a main casing II having a head or cover I 2, 'a side inlet block I3fastened to one side of the casing II, a side outlet block I4 fastened to the other side of the casing, an external valve assembly comprising a valve seat I5, a valve body IS, a valve guide I! and valve I8, an outlet cap I9, a bottom inlet block 20, a tube 2I for connecting the inlet block I3 and the bottom inlet block 20, and tube 22 for connecting the outlet cap I9 to the outlet blockI4. I r The cylindrical casing II is connected to the inlet and outlet side blocks I3 and I4, to thebottom inlet block 20 and to the head I2 by any suitable means, such as by welding, for example. Welds are indicated on the drawing. All of these parts are preferably'of cast steeloriron.

The inlet and outlet side blocks I3 and I4 have tapped entrance and'exit ports 23 and 24, respectively, which are connected in the steam line in which the trap in is to be used. The-block I3 has a chamber 25 therein which is permanently connected to a chamber 26* in the bottom block 20 by the'tube 2 I. The chamber 26 which communicates with'the interior of the casing II can be cleaned from the bottom by removing the blow-off plug 21 in the bottom of the block 20. The block I4 has a chamber 28 which receives fluid from lever 33 is actuated by the float lever 36. The

I 36 has a plurality of holes 43 in one of which is chamber 46 in the block [9 and the champerzsrfi" the outlet block 14. A tapped opening m in the:

top of the block i9 is pluggeet by'ipiu'g 48-1 tube 22 passes through a stuffing box 49 in the block I4, the stufiing therein bein heldin-place by the packing gland 58. A clamp surrounding block !4 and held by means of screwfii melee-=- ing against the underside of the block 14 presses the packing in thebox 5:9 an holds the gland 5B in place.

. The operation oi the: steam trap lfl vvill' new be described.. The trap is placed ina vertical posi tiomas shown 'in'Fig-t 2 with the unit being drained piped to" 23 and the threaded openingv 24 iii-the outlet block M being piped to areturn': or drain. Under operating conditions th'e casing I I! is com- .pletelv fil-ied with water. With: no condensate to fall, discharge of condensate is positive and continuous until the float rises. The condensate passes through chamber 4 6, tube 22 and chamber 28 and thence to port 24.

When no condensate is coming to the trap l0, steam enters the casing ll via the chamber 26.

it enters thehbat 39, dimaem mmwater inside n valve.

The three pas of holes 43 provided in the valve: lever 33 to receive pin 44 make it possible entering. the trap t0, the float 39-will be approximatel'y two-thirds filled with steam and buoyed to thetop most position (shown in: Fig. 2) with pin 40 bearing against the valve lever 33 The valve ['8 is h'eldagainst the valve seat !5 by? the pressure Within thecasing H any air entering the'float' 3a topass through the float and be discharged with the condensate; As condensate reaches the trap, the steam. in the floatfllf is displaced by t'he'water until the float is no longer buoyant and begins to sink. As the float, 39 drops, it remains vertical as it pivots around the pin so and pulls fioatlever36 down", the latter being pivoted: at the pin 31'. This causes the pin 44' through one of the pairs of holes- 43 Theventi42'allows seat It can be cleaned: by removing the plug 4'8 to come intocontact with the valve lever- 33 and forces: this lever downward, it being; pivoted around pin 34; As the valve lever is forced downward atvthepin 44; the valve i8 is pulled-away from its seat [.5 until the force ofthepressure holding: the valve: shut is overcome andthe valve opens. As pointedout in the above-identified Kaye application, as the floatdescendsthe already tremendous mechanical advantage ill-- creases, for as pin- 44: describes an arc aboutthe pivot 37, the line of contact between thetpin 44 ami the lever 33' moves away from the pivot '34, exerting more force downward-1y on the lever-.33 and-inturnon the valvei8.-

After theva l ve' l'8 has been-opened suiiicieritly to overcome the force oi the: pressdrewithinthe casing l l,..the weight- 0f the valve lever 33' alone pulls: the valve 18 wide open and the great ehainical' aelv'antage-- initially: utilizedto* pull the vaivel8! cit the; seat i5i's no-long'e'r necessary; It is for this reason: that pin 45 iss'o positioned 0B1- the float lever that-it makes contact with valve lever sit-shortly after the valve l"8 has lefit the-seat l;'5-. Thus, as the float- 39 descends;the pin moves downwardly at a faster rate 'than the pin 44-',-pu l'ling the-valve iii-tar away from its seat 15;; thereby providing afree and clean orifice 53 for the passage of condensate. In addition toproviding-a wide= open valve, pinl45' eliminates the possibilityot the valve [-8 fluctuating or'fluttening: on or off its seat I15" due tothe veloeit-y' of the water rushing past it. Once the float 39 begins to handle a greater number of operating conditiens with one'val-ve size bv-movingpin 44- to' the most suitable pair of-holes'43. I

For a more detaileddescriptioh oi the reversible. valve l8 and valve seat I 5 assembly briefly described above, reference ismade to Patent 1,960,999, issued May 2a, 1934; to .1; Kayea v Removalof valve l 8 and seat t5 canbe eiiected without removing. the trap Hifromthe line or breaking any pipe joints;- 'I o-remove the memhere -8- and' i5-,- all'that isnecessany is to remove the two, stud nuts- 3 i, loosenthe clamp screwEZ to remove the clamp SLand then remove the ea-ptQ taking the tube 22; which is attached to it, with it. The orifice 5 3- inthe valve and using apicleor cleaning tool The port 41 can be used also as a test outlet- 7 Variousmodifications can be-made inthe embodiment described abovewithout departing from: the spirit of the invention, the scope oi which is indicated-bythe elaima What is claimed is:

1;;A-nina-line steam trap comprising a" main casing, inlet and outlet bloekson oppositesidesot said casing, eachof said blocks having. a port for connection to; apipe line having fluid flow therein; means for eonneeting said port insaid inlet block to the interior of said casing,- a headfor said casing having anopening therein, a valve by an upward movement toclose the portinthe valve seat, a iioat within said casing, lever: mechanism between the float and valve for operating said valve, a cap positioned abovesaid valve seat and fastened to said casing. headthereby holding said seat'in position,- said cap having a-chambe'rtherein having an inlet port adjacent said valve seat and arr outlet port, means for connecting said:- outlet port insaid cap to said he said outlet, block said last-mentioned means compris ing a tube outside of both said main casing and:

" easing-,- inletand; outlet blocks on opposite sides of said casing. each oi said: blocks having aport for con-neetionetoa pipe line: having fluid flow therein, means for connecting, said port in said" inletblock-to theinterior of: said casinga head for said casingihav-i-ng air-opening therein-,a valveholder positioned within said opening and extending above it, a valve seat having a port therein and being positioned above said valve holder, a valve carried by the valve holder and adapted by an upward movement to close the port in the valve seat, a float within said casing, lever mechanism between the float and valve for operating said valve, a cap positioned above said valve seat and fastened to said casing head thereby holding said seat in position, said cap having a chamber therein having an inlet port adjacent said valve seat and an outlet port, means for connecting said outlet port in said cap to said port in said outlet block, said last-mentioned means comprising a tube outside of both said main casing and said head and which is readily removable from said outlet block, a stuffing box surrounding a portion of said last-mentioned means in said outlet block, and a gland for holding the stuffing in said stuffing box in position. I

3. An in-line steam trap comprising a main casing, inlet and outlet blocks on opposite sides of said casing, each of said blocks having a port for connection to a pipe line having fluid flow therein, means for connecting said port in said inlet block to the interior of said casing, a head for said casing having an opening therein, a valve holder positioned within said opening and extending above it, a valve seat having a port therein and being positioned above said valve halder, a "valve carried by the valve holder and adapted by an upward movement to close the port in the valve seat, a float within said casing, lever mechanism between the float and valve for operating said valve, a cap positioned above said valve seat and fastened to said casing head thereby holding said seat in position, said cap having a chamber therein having an inlet port adjacent said valve seat and an outlet port, means for connecting said outlet port in said cap to said port in said outlet block, said last-mentioned means comprising a tube outside of both said main casing and said head and which is readily removable from said outlet block, a stufling box surrounding a portion of said last-mentioned means in said outlet block, a gland for holding the stufflng in said stufling box in position, and a clamp around said outlet block for pressing said gland against said stufling.

4. An in-line steam trap comprising a main casing, inlet and outlet blocks on opposite sides of said casing, each of said blocks having a port for connection to a pipe line having fluid flow therein, means for connecting said port in said inlet block to the interior of said casing, said means comprising a bottom block connected to the lower portion of the casing, a chamber in said bottom block opening into the interior of said casing and a tube connecting the port in the inlet block to said chamber in the bottom block, a head for said casing having an opening therein, a valve holder positioned within said opening and extending above it, a valve seat having a port therein and being positioned above said valve holder, a valve carried by the valve holder and adapted by an upward movement to close the port in the valve seat, a float within said casing, a lever mechanism between the float and valve for operating said valve, a cap positioned above said valve seat and fastened to said casing head thereby holding said seat in position, said cap having a chamber therein having an inlet port adjacent said valve seat and an outlet port, and means for connecting said outlet port in said cap to said port in said outlet block.

5. An in-line steam trap comprising a main casing, inlet and outlet blocks on opposite sides of said casing, each of said blocks having a port for connection to a pipe line having fluid flow therein, means for connecting said port in said inlet block to the interior of said casing, said means comprising a bottom block connected to the lower portion of the casing, a chamber in said bottom block opening into the interior of said casing and a tube connecting the port in the inlet block to said chamber in the bottom block, said bottom block having a blow-01f port in the under side thereof connected to the chamber therein and a plug for said blow-off port, a head for said casing having an opening therein, a valve holder positioned within said opening and extending above it, a valve seat having a port therein and being positioned above said valve holder, a valve carried by the valve holder and adapted by an upward movement to close the port in the valve seat, a float within said casing, lever mechanism between the float and valve for operating said valve, a cap positioned above said valve seat and fastened to said casing head thereby holding said seat in position, said cap having a chamber therein having an inlet port adjacent said valve seat and an outlet port, and means for connecting said outlet port in said cap to said port in said outlet block.

6. An in-line steam trap comprising a main casing, inlet and outlet blocks on opposite sides of said casing, each of said blocks having a port for connection to a pipe line having fluid flow therein, means for connecting said port in said inlet block to the interior of said casing, said means comprising a bottom block connected to the lower portion of the casing, a chamber in said bottom block opening into the interior of said casing and a tube connecting the port in the inlet block to said chamber in the bottom block, a head for said casing having an opening therein, a valve holder positioned within said opening and extending above it, a valve seat having a port therein and being positioned above said valve holder, a valve carried by the valve holder and adapted by an upward movement to close the port in the valve seat, a float within said casing, lever mechanism between the float and valve for operating said valve, a cap positioned above said valve seat and fastened to said casing head thereby holding said seat in position, said cap having a chamber therein having an inlet port adjacent said valve seat and an outlet port, and means for connecting said outlet port in said cap to said port in said outlet block, said last-mentioned means comprising a tube outside of both said main casing and said head and which is readily removable from said outlet block.

JAMES W. KAYE.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 690,658 McAuley Jan. 7, 1902 740,435 Humphrey Oct. 6, 1903 992,453 Silliman May 16, 1911 1,060,471 Marquardt Apr. 29, 1913 1,782,873 Gurney Nov. 25, 1930 1,901,200 Strong Mar. 14, 1933 1,960,999 Kaye May 29, 1934 1,966,007 Flood July 10, 1934 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 295,663 Great Britain of 1928 

